Politics

Host Rachel Martin speaks with Nate Silver, who writes the FiveThirtyEight blog for The New York Times, about the mechanics of the GOP primary, the number of delegates apportioned so far and how future contests will determine the delegate count.

Michigan holds its Republican primary on Tuesday. The former Massachusetts governor and Michigan native Mitt Romney has been touring the state in search of votes. A week ago, Rick Santorum held a double-digit lead in the polls. Now, NPR's Ari Shapiro reports, Romney seems to have closed the gap.

Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum are battling for Tuesday's Republican primary, and polls show the candidates are neck-and-neck. One group that Romney appears to have an advantage with is Roman Catholic voters despite the fact Romney is Mormon and Santorum Catholic.

It's probably safe to say that it's been an exhausting week for the Republican hopefuls, vying to win delegates in Michigan's Tuesday primary. Host Scott Simon talks about the political week past and the one to come with NPR's Don Gonyea, who's just returned from Michigan.

The presidential candidate loosened up a bit in his home state, politicking in a way that hasn't happened lately. It seems he's closed the gap in polls with Rick Santorum, but not everyone is giving him a warm welcome ahead of Tuesday's primary.

Newt Gingrich says a pro-Mitt Romney superPAC should stop running a political ad that he claims tells lies about him. That raises the question of whether TV stations have any obligation — legal or ethical — to screen political ads for truthfulness.

As better-known candidates hunt for votes in Michigan's Republican primary, the first openly gay GOP presidential hopeful is plotting a minor upset. Fred Karger is focusing on one congressional district in the hopes of winning a few delegates to the national convention.

Mitt Romney's tax returns show he pays an effective rate of just under 15 percent. His father, George, paid two to three times that rate. What one family's changing tax burden reveals about the design of the American tax code.

When you give to WAMU, your tax-deductible membership gift helps make possible award-winning programs such as Morning Edition, All Things Considered, The Diane Rehm Show, The Kojo Nnamdi Show, and other favorites.